Lorca
by Menelaion
Summary: Despite absolutely loving Captain Pike, I find myself drawn to Gabriel Lorca... so I'm diverting my attention to explore some naughtiness with the Dark Captain. Sorry. Really.
1. Chapter 1

Lorca woke up with a start, his senses at full alert. It was a habit that had kept him alive in his world but here seemed a waste of energy. Nothing fun happened here, unless he started it.

It was another day on the USS Discovery: research, experiment, discover... it was enough to drive a Terran to distraction. Till they got the spore drive working they couldn't even engage in a good old dog fight. How he longed for the rush that came in battle...but this was where he needed to be if he was ever to get home.

Lorca poured over reports in search of anything useful, anything that could get him home faster. He kept bumping into people whom he'd already killed or watched die or wanted dead. The one person he wanted to find was nearly within grasp, he just had to be patient for a little longer; he wondered how this universe had shaped her, how different could she be?

He looked at Cadet Tilly: a classic Federation creation, so meek and soft... how he missed Killy. Maybe with the right guidance he'd get to re-create the Slayer of Sorna Prime...though he wouldn't hold his breath... The battle simulations he ran daily we're getting better but this crew lacked the fear that drove Terrans to do everything.

Lorca was still trying to figure out their motivation, their pressure points. They shouldn't be that different... but they were... it started with their wish for peaceful exploration and co-existence and finished with a slave being his second in command... Kelpians... yummy.

His thoughts turned to Michael, as they usually did. The one he'd lost. She'd been formidable in every sense. She matched his appetites and ambition. They fit perfectly in a world where nothing was certain or lasted. If he had one weakness, it was her. He had great hopes for this Burnham, the Mutineer.


	2. Chapter 2

The bridge was surprisingly quiet. End of shift was coming and after a few battle drills the crew were ready to wind down. The Captain had other ideas... but protocols had to be observed.

Lorca was good at hiding his feelings, thoughts...intentions. It was the art of misdirection where a grain of truth remained at the core of everything he said... he so wanted to get home and he so wanted Michael. He wanted this crew to help him get both.

This Michael wasn't his, yet. She'd been onboard a week and he'd prodded and pushed. He'd put her in with Tilly... it was a move he couldn't resist. Seeing them together brought back so many memories...if he squinted, which in this infernal light was hard not to... constantly.

He looked around, doing the mental calculations that kept him focused, playing a game: dead, dead, dead, alive, in agoniser, dinner. Yep, that was his Bridge crew accounted for...

'Captain, incoming call from Admiral Cornwell.'

'Transfer it to the Ready Room.' Lorca didn't need an audience for this. The Admiral knew him better than most, well, a version of him.

'What can I do for you Admiral?' He tried to smile.

'Cut the crap Gabriel,' Cornwell was actually smiling at him, in contrast to her harsh words. If this was the start of a telling off, it was going to be a strange one.

'Kat?' Lorca managed to sound genuinely confused, as with the amount of secrets he was hiding, any one could have been discovered.

Cornwall shook her head. 'You assign the only Mutineer in Starfleet history to spore drive research and you don't think you'll get a call?'

'News travels fast.' Lorca had been expecting the call...a couple of days ago. 'I can use her here, Kat.' He turned up the charm. 'Everyone deserves a second chance.'

He smiled when he heard the Admiral sigh. The woman still had feelings for him. He had no qualms about playing up to them. Always a grain of truth.


	3. Chapter 3

Lorca walked down the corridor to his private lab just as the lights dimmed marking the start of the night shift. This was his favourite time, if he had to choose.

Since he'd got here, he'd been tracking down his special toys... if they weren't invented yet...well, they could be created. You just had to have a little imagination.

'Computer, locate Stamets.' Lorca had the sudden urge to talk to the traitor. He was actually someone he preferred in this universe.

'Lieutenant Stamets is in engineering.'

'Of course,' Lorca muttered, annoyed with himself, 'where else would he be.' The man lived his work.

They were passing a star system he'd once obliterated but not before he'd picked up some interesting minerals. Chances were the minerals were here too... he just needed an excuse.

Lorca turned round to head to engineering. He saw Detmer down the corridor practically jump when she realised he was now walking towards her. It was so satisfying he could hardly suppress a smirk.

'Sir!' Detmer stood to attention while still metres away.

'Lieutenant.' He nodded in acknowledgment as he reached her. 'Walk with me.' Her augments intrigued him and another piece of the plan seemed to come together.

'Sir?' Detmer recognised a predator when she saw one but Starfleet training was so ingrained that her question sounded like nothing more than a polite request for direction.

'I read you got your license by the time you turned 12?' Lorca cut straight to the chase.

'Yes, Sir.' Detmer confirmed, falling into step next to the Captain.

'Why did you join Starfleet?' He stopped, as if to emphasise the importance of his question.

Detmer looked at him for a second before replying, 'It was a way forward.'

Lorca tilted his head, waiting to hear more.

'I wanted the challenge.' She smiled, as she saw the approval in his eyes. The man was scary but then she'd always been attracted to danger.

'I have a challenge for you.' Lorca said, raising his hand to touch the implants on the side of her face.


	4. Chapter 4

Lorca stood in the Ready Room, absently stroking the tribble. He was coming to a decision that for the first time, in as long as he could remember, he didn't like. He knew himself, he knew his strengths and weaknesses, and was good at recognising both in others. It was this place, this universe. It was making him question everything. He didn't like it.

He placed the tribble on the table, pressed a button and watched the ball of fur dematerialise. He couldn't have his pet going after the new chief of security, revealing his secret. Klingons in this universe were the interesting ones and Lorca wanted Ash close to him.

It was Michael that was giving him this headache. She was so different and yet every time he saw her, every time he was near her... memories took over. He'd seduced her once, he could do it again. He kept telling himself that... but doubt was creeping in.

It was getting harder and harder to stay away. In this strange reality, he longed to feel like himself. Funny how Ash made him feel better, the warrior who didn't know he was a warrior, yet still behaved as one. It was nearly as strange as a human raised as a Vulcan. Lorca hit the table where his tribble had disappeared. Pain. It spread up his arm and for a second the doubts were gone. Pain, an old friend that had left scars all over his body.

Lorca used pain to focus his thoughts, focus his actions. It helped strip away all but the most important question. What was it that made him tick? Ever since he got here, it had always been Michael's face. The chance to see her again. It no longer mattered if she was the same person he once knew. She was Michael now. He still wanted to get home.


End file.
